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The Microsoft Black and African American Partner Growth Initiative

Enroll in our new initiative designed to support Black and African American tech companies and entrepreneurs. Complete your enrollment by becoming a partner below.
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Your ideas. Your solutions. Our support.

This initiative was created to help Black and African American businesses bring their solutions to market and connect to a broader global community as partners. As a participant, you’ll unlock business resources designed to aid your success, including personalized consultations with a dedicated advisor and tools to help you jumpstart your marketing.

Our commitment is grounded in three pillars:

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Community

We aim to increase the representation of Black and African American-owned businesses who are partners in our partner community.

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Partnership

We are committed to giving partners a platform and opportunities to innovate and grow their business.

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Capital

We are currently piloting programs to increase access to capital for new and existing Black and African American partners. Programs are coming soon.

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Partner spotlight

“There’s no bigger partner ecosystem or partner salesforce than what Microsoft has. Our ability to get our Black founders plugged into that partner ecosystem should result in incredible generation of additional wealth within our Black communities.”
—Nyasha Tunduwani, Founder and President, Real Impact Technology Consulting

How to enroll in the initiative

To be eligible, your business must be a 51 percent Black or African American-owned tech organization, in the Microsoft Partner Network, and based in the United States.

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Fill out the form

To enroll in the initiative, please fill out the form using your business email first. This helps us confirm that your business meets the initiative requirements.

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Join the Microsoft Partner Network

If you’re not yet a Microsoft partner, be sure to join the network in order to successfully enroll in the initiative. Joining this global community also unlocks more opportunities to differentiate and grow your business.

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Check your inbox

Once you’ve filled out the form and joined the Partner Network, we’ll email you with details on how to access your new resources and get started as a member of the Black and African American Partner Growth Initiative.

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Fill out the form

To enroll in the initiative, please fill out the form using the business email associated with your Microsoft Partner Network account. This helps us confirm that your business meets the initiative requirements.

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Check your inbox

Once you’ve filled out the form, we’ll email you with confirmation details.

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Access your new resources

Explore the resources you now have access to as a member enrolled in the Black and African American Partner Growth Initiative.

What is the Microsoft Partner Network?

The Partner Network is a hub of people, resources, and offerings brought together to give you everything you need to build and deliver successful solutions for your customers.
Learn more
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Juneteenth 2021 events

Join us for a week of virtual events celebrating partnership and the Black and African American tech community.
Learn more

FAQ

Find answers to common questions about the Black and African American Partner Growth Initiative.

Participants in the Black and African American Partner Growth Initiative will receive personalized guidance and support to help their business take full advantage of Microsoft partner programs, offers, and resources.

To be eligible, your business must be a 51 percent Black or African American-owned tech organization, a member of the Microsoft Partner Network, and based in the United States.

Eligible businesses who become partners include those who are:

  • Offering consulting and services that utilize Microsoft products.
    OR
  • Building on a Microsoft platform to build their own business.
    OR
  • Developing apps using Microsoft products
    OR
  • Creating IP using Microsoft products (i.e., organizations who are willing to build technology on the Microsoft platform)

Businesses who meet all initiative requirements can begin the enrollment process here.

Microsoft believes in supporting partners as they grow for the long-term. We are piloting two programs to provide access to capital: a $20 million payment solutions program and a $50 million partner fund. The $50 million partner fund will provide loans to support eligible partners through their startup phase, with the loan repaid over time as their business grows. The $20 million payment solutions program will offer eligible existing and new partners interest-free, flexible extended payment terms on Microsoft invoices.


Existing and new partners will be able to apply or receive more information on these financing programs when they complete enrollment in the Black and African American Partner Growth Initiative and as the programs become available.

Microsoft welcomes all technology businesses to join the Microsoft Partner Network. It is no cost to join. Learn about how to join and the benefits of becoming a member here.

Creating more access for partnership is an ongoing mission of the Microsoft Partner Network. We have set our initial commitment over a three-year period and will continue to evolve our approach during this timeframe and in the future.

Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, shared many actions Microsoft is taking to address racial injustice in this post. As part of this, Microsoft made a commitment to increase the representation of Black and African American-led organizations in the US partner community by 20 percent within three years. Our pledge to address underrepresentation within our partner ecosystem will continue to be reflected through our business strategies.

Members of our International Association of Microsoft Channel Partners community, including partners from the Black and African American community, provided advisory support for this initiative. They have offered feedback and insights which we will continue to consider as we grow the initiative.

We are actively working to connect with Black and African American tech communities to drive awareness of the Microsoft Partner Network and this initiative’s offerings. This includes historically Black colleges and universities, technology professional associations, startups, and supplier ecosystem organizations.

View the terms and conditions.